


Dancing and Dessert

by Bajillian



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Baking, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Rated for implications, Slice of Life, Slow Dancing, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-30
Updated: 2020-07-30
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:21:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25615003
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bajillian/pseuds/Bajillian
Summary: He’d just put the cake pans into the oven when he felt a pair of strong, warm arms wrap around his waist. He stood up straighter and closed the oven.“Good morning,” he said.“Mm, mornin’, babe,” Ace replied, resting his chin on Sanji’s shoulder. His words slurred a bit, a clear indication he’d just woken up not too long ago, but it was the most adorable thing. “Y’bakin’? Smells good.”
Relationships: Portgas D. Ace/Vinsmoke Sanji
Comments: 12
Kudos: 69





	Dancing and Dessert

Sanji wanted to brush up on his baking skills, since he had the day off and they had the ingredients readily available anyway. Ace was still sleeping, of course, but it’d be a nice surprise once he woke up. The cook tried not to make too much noise as he got out his supplies, all laid out neatly along the surfaces. He’d even put on background music. Something calm and without any words.

Once everything was set up and he’d washed his hands, he got started and lost himself in it pretty quickly. He usually did. It wasn’t just his job, it was his interest after all. It was easy to get into a rhythm. This time, he was baking a cake. A big one, since he wanted to eat some himself and he knew Ace could easily inhale a meal for ten. 

Despite its size, it wasn’t too complicated - at least, compared to other desserts Sanji had prepared before. His vision was a three-tier chocolate cake. Each layer was to be separated by a raspberry preserve filling, and the cake in its entirety would be covered by a rich chocolate frosting, decorated with white and pink buttercream flowers and fresh raspberries.

He’d just put the cake pans into the oven when he felt a pair of strong, warm arms wrap around his waist. He stood up straighter and closed the oven.

“Good morning,” he said.

“Mm, mornin’, babe,” Ace replied, resting his chin on Sanji’s shoulder. His words slurred a bit, a clear indication he’d just woken up not too long ago, but it was the most adorable thing. “Y’bakin’? Smells good.”

Sanji leaned back into his touch and tilted his head a bit to press a kiss to Ace’s cheek. “Yeah, I’m making a chocolate cake,” he said, sounding proud of himself. “It’s gonna be a bit, but I promise the wait will be worth it.”

Ace smiled and returned a kiss to Sanji’s cheek. His lips traveled down Sanji’s neck with some more delicate kisses until he reached the crook and nuzzled his face in there. It didn’t last too long, however, because Sanji held up a spoon that still had cake batter on it.

“Don’t you want to lick the spoon?” Sanji asked. “I left some extra batter on there specifically for you.”

Ace lifted his head and leaned forward a bit to take the spoon into his mouth. He let out a content hum. “Amazing, as always,” he said, and leaned closer to Sanji’s ear, “But never as sweet as you.”

Sanji giggled and set the dirty spoon down into the sink. “You’re so cute,” he said. “But I’m glad you like my work, even before it’s remotely edible.” At least, by Sanji’s standards. Sanji could throw a raw egg onto the ground and say to eat it, and Ace would comply.

“Of course, you’re a master chef,” Ace said. His hands slid to rest on Sanji’s hips instead, and he started to gently sway along to the music. “The best there is.”

“I wouldn’t go that far,” Sanji began, but was cut off when Ace gently spun him around so they were facing each other. 

“I _would_ go that far,” Ace said. “I’ll kick anyone’s ass who disagrees.”

“You might have to kick my ass, then.”

“Mm. Later,” Ace said with a little smirk that faded into a softer smile. 

For a moment, the two swayed along in silence. Sanji’s arms rested on Ace’s shoulders, one hand going into his hair to pull his face closer so their noses touched. Their eyes fluttered closed. It was peaceful. 

“You know, I never learned how to slow dance,” Ace said, his voice barely above a whisper. “Never had the chance.”

Sanji opened his eyes to see a beautiful pair of brown ones staring back at him. “I learned when I was younger,” he said. “It’s been a while since I’ve done it, though. Would you like me to teach you?”

Ace nodded slowly. “I’d like that, yeah. Maybe I can teach you somethin’, too. I can do a mean chicken dance.”

Sanji chuckled. “You’re such a dork. Let’s just start with slow dancing.”

Ace let out a little laugh as well before pressing a soft kiss to Sanji’s lips and standing up straighter. “Alright, boss. What’s first?”

Sanji hummed and leaned in for more kisses as he thought. It made Ace giggle, but he gladly returned them.

“This the first part?” Ace mumbled without breaking the kiss.

“Mhm,” Sanji answered, but finally pulled away. His cheeks were pink, and Ace had a goofy smile. “It’s a very important part of the process. Helps you bond with your partner better. The next thing we should cover is hand placement.”

Ace giggled again as he nodded in response. His hands went lower until they were resting on Sanji’s ass. “Here?”

Sanji raised an eyebrow. “No, Ace,” he said, and then let out a squeak when Ace squeezed his ass, making the handsy boy giggle some more. He couldn’t help giggling himself, and brought his own hands down to squeeze Ace’s ass. “Do you want me to teach you or not?” 

“I dunno, I kinda like this position,” Ace said before continuing to sway along to the music, two handfuls of cheeks. “Wouldn’t you agree?”

Sanji rolled his eyes and slid his hands up Ace’s back to rest there instead. “I do agree, but I want to slow dance with you,” he said. “I’ll let you have most of the cake once it’s done.”

Ace chuckled and lifted his hands as well. “Babe, we both know I was going to have most of the cake anyway,” he said. “But besides that, you don’t have to convince me. I wanna slow dance with you, too.” He stopped swaying and pulled back to offer his hands. “Where do these go?”

Sanji smiled and gently took Ace’s hands. “Put your right hand on my lower back,” he explained as he placed that hand, “And then hold _my_ right hand with your left.” 

Ace took a careful hold of Sanji’s right hand, but not before placing a kiss to the back of it. “Okay, got it,” he said. “Where does _your_ other hand go?”

“Right here,” Sanji said as he rested his hand on Ace’s shoulder. “Is this okay with you?”

Ace gazed back at Sanji with a dreamy look, and leaned forward for a brief but loving kiss. It was enough to make the cook’s heart flutter. Ace’s voice was soft when he replied with, “More than okay, darling.”

Sanji couldn’t help but stare back at Ace. Something about the way the sunlight spilled in through the window while the gentle music played in the background made the moment feel like he was in a fairytale. “Perfect,” he finally replied, his voice just as soft as Ace’s. He returned the kiss before looking down at their feet. Focus. “Now… we can start with the footwork. It’s really not that hard once you get the hang of it. I can even teach you how to lead into turning us around another time.”

Ace nodded, his eyes still trained on Sanji’s face. “Sounds simple enough,” he said. “Just promise to be gentle with me. It’s my first time.”

“You’re such a horny bastard,” Sanji said with a chuckle.

“Mm, had a nice dream.”

“That explains why you’re in such a good mood,” Sanji said. “But I can’t say I mind. As long as you don’t get too distracted. Boners aren’t very helpful in this kind of thing.”

“I’d say they are, actually,” Ace purred, moving in a little closer.

Sanji just hummed and smiled. “I’m not even going to ask what the hell that’s supposed to mean, and I’m just going to move on with the next step,” he said. 

“You’re in charge, babe. Show me how it’s done.”

Even if Ace was flirty, he was still always willing to be serious about things, especially if it was something Sanji was interested in. The cook appreciated it, even if it meant he had to deal with Ace’s goofy antics.

“We can start swaying a bit,” Sanji said before he demonstrated. “Just like we were doing before. Feel the music.”

Ace did as he was instructed, matching Sanji’s hips as he swayed his own to the music. “I’m a master at this,” he commented.

“The best, dear,” Sanji said with a little laugh. He let them do that for a little bit longer before he gave the next instruction. “This is the tempo we want to move our feet at. So instead of swaying your hips, you sway your... body? I guess? It’s harder for me to explain in words. Let me just…”

Sanji stepped to the side with his right foot, and then let his left foot follow into a step-touch. Then, he repeated that with his left foot leading. He did this a few times before Ace followed along and they were both swaying together again. Ace wasn’t as graceful as Sanji was, but this was also his first time doing this kind of thing, and Ace wasn’t exactly an elegant man to begin with.

“Good,” Sanji said. “This is called a step-touch, I think.”

Ace repeated the phrase in a mumble, clearly concentrated on where his feet were going. However, it was making his movements a little too robotic.

“Hey,” Sanji said softly, the hand on Ace’s shoulder raising to tilt Ace’s face up so they were looking at each other again. “Keep your eyes on me, just focus on feeling the music instead of concentrating on our feet.”

Ace nodded and did his best to follow Sanji’s advice. For the moment, it was going well. Ace’s movements had gotten more fluid and it was looking more like he knew what he was doing. Of course, this didn’t last long, when Ace somehow managed to step on one of Sanji’s feet, making the blonde yelp in surprise.

The two stopped moving, and Ace’s gaze returned to Sanji’s feet. “Oh fuck, are you okay?” he asked. “I’m so sorry.”

Sanji seemed to be okay, if his laughter was anything to go by. “Yeah, I’m fine, don’t worry,” he said, his hand once again moving to instead rest on Ace’s cheek, his thumb stroking the warm skin there. “Luckily, you’re barefoot. But it surprised me more than actually hurting me. I was kind of just…”

“Lost in my eyes?” Ace asked with a smirk now that he knew he didn’t have to be concerned about his boyfriend’s toes. 

Sanji glanced away with a bashful smile. “Actually… yeah,” he said. “Can you blame me? My dance partner is the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen. I got lost in the moment.”

Ace hummed and leaned in to kiss Sanji’s nose. “What a coincidence. It just so happens that _you’re_ the most beautiful man _I’ve_ ever seen. Tell me, cutie, are you single?”

Sanji raised an eyebrow. “This seems like a trap.”

Ace chuckled. “What? How?”

“If I say yes, then that means I don’t have a wonderful boyfriend. If I say no, I have to _reject_ my wonderful boyfriend.” Sanji’s other hand made its way to Ace’s hair once the shorter man’s arms wrapped around his waist. 

“You make a very good point, sir,” Ace said. “How about this, is your boyfriend into threesomes? I’m sure he’s absolutely beautiful and great in bed.”

“You’re such an idiot.”

“And I bet he’s the best at dancing,” Ace continued, returning to swaying them both. “Way better than I just was.”

“You’re not even making any sense anymore. You’re talking about _you_.”

“He’s probably a really good kisser, too.” Ace leaned closer. His breath was hot against Sanji’s skin - though Sanji’s skin was hot enough with the amount he was blushing. “Do you think so?”

“This was supposed to be me teaching you how to slow dance,” Sanji said. “...But if you want it to be me teaching you how to kiss instead, I suppose I can deal with a change of plans.”

The moment their lips touched, the timer beeped, and they only succeeded in clanking their teeth together. Ace managed to get a kiss in before Sanji shooed him away so he could prevent the cake from cooking for too long and burning. 

“Maybe later, after I’m done with this,” Sanji said, clearly flustered, but still having enough sense to put on oven mitts before taking out the cake pans. He set them down on a cooling rack, and Ace hopped up onto the counter beside it, still at a safe distance. Even if he had an incredible tolerance to heat, that didn’t mean he could avoid getting burns. 

“Fuck, that smells good,” Ace said. “Can I just eat it like this?”

“Absolutely not. What kind of chef would I be if I let you eat the cake just like this?” Sanji asked. “Plus, they need to cool so I can actually decorate them without everything melting off.”

“Aw, c’mon, I could eat the frosting, too, and then it’ll all combine in my mouth,” Ace said. 

_“No.”_

Ace let out a laugh. “Fine. I’ll be patient.”

“Thank you.” Sanji set the oven mitts down and started gathering materials again. “I’m gonna clean up a bit and get everything else ready, but if you help me, I’ll let you snack on a few extra raspberries.”

Ace didn’t even have to think before he hopped down. “What do you need, babe?” he asked. “I guess I’m learning a _bunch_ of skills today, huh?”

Sanji hummed. “Well, the filling and frostings are over on the table, so if you could bring them to me without eating any of it, that would be a big help,” he said as he grabbed the various dirty bowls and spoons and the like that he’d used in the process of making the batter. “The raspberries are in the fridge. Those need to be washed.” He set everything in the sink and began washing, since he figured he had the time. 

“You got it,” Ace replied, grabbing the bowls (and stealing a tiny bit of frosting on his finger without Sanji noticing) to bring over to the counter. Then, he made his way to the fridge to grab the raspberries and invite them to the cake-decorating party. “Anything else?”

“You could get me a couple piping bags and an offset spatula.”

Ace nodded. He didn’t know what an offset spatula was, but he could do his best. He reached into the drawers and cabinets for the items, and set them down with everything else.

Sanji looked over. “Thank you, dear,” he said. “Once the raspberries are washed, you can--” He chuckled. “Ace, that’s just a normal spatula.” 

Ace looked down at the spatula in question, and then back up at Sanji. “Isn’t that what you asked for?” He crossed his arms and pouted. What a cutie. 

Sanji had an amused smile on his face. “Not really. When have you ever seen me use that kind of a spatula while baking?”

“Well… man, I dunno,” Ace mumbled. “I don’t know shit about baking. All I know is that I get two sweet treats at the end: whatever you’re baking, and you.”

Sanji turned the sink off and dried his hands before reaching for the spatula. “Alright, I’ll let it slide,” he said. He gave Ace’s ass a little pat with the incorrect tool, and put it back into the drawer so he could look for the offset spatula.

Ace giggled. Apparently, that was enough to make him happy again. Once Sanji found what he was looking for, he held it up for Ace to see.

“This is an offset spatula,” Sanji said. “It’s what I’m going to use to level out and frost the cake.”

Ace hummed, and nodded in understanding. “That does look more efficient than what I took out,” he said. “I _have_ seen one of those before. Didn’t know it was called that.”

“Now you do,” Sanji said. “Maybe the next time I bake a cake, I can wait until you’re awake so I can teach you more about the whole process.”

“I like that idea.” Ace glanced at the cake. “Is it ready to be assembled and decorated yet?”

Sanji nodded. “Let’s wash the raspberries, and then I can show you how it’s done.”

As promised, Ace was allowed a few raspberries, which he ate while he watched Sanji level out the cake layers and put them together with the raspberry filling in between each one. Sanji explained in detail what he was doing all the while, and Ace watched carefully so he would remember for the next time. Sanji demonstrated with the offset knife how to frost the cake neatly, and then let Ace give it a try. As expected, he wasn’t able to get the frosting to be as smooth as Sanji had, but what mattered was that he had the cook’s support.

The best part was decorating. Just like Sanji had envisioned, the two added buttercream flowers (half of which were neater than the others) and the best-looking raspberries to finish it off. They shared the remaining raspberries and stepped back to admire their work.

“I’m gonna take a picture of this, but can you get me a knife to cut it?” Sanji asked as he reached for his phone. Once he’d gotten a few pictures and he was satisfied, he took the knife from Ace, who’d returned to holding Sanji from behind, and cut a couple pieces. He plated them, but Ace insisted that his hands were busy and he’d have to be fed.

Sanji made sure to get the first bite, and then held up the fork again with another piece for Ace to take. “Here you go, your majesty.” 

Ace giggled and took the bite. He made a satisfied sound as he kissed Sanji’s cheek. “Tastes delicious,” he said, and then smirked. “The cake’s good, too.”

Sanji gently bumped Ace’s hip with his own. “Glad to hear it,” he said. 

The two were quiet then, since they were both too busy enjoying their work. Somewhere in there, they’d started swaying again, back to how they’d started. 

“I enjoy dancing like this better,” Ace said, breaking the silence after a moment. “Me, holding my favorite cutie while he feeds me cake.”

Sanji smiled and offered the last bite to Ace. “I do, too,” he said. He set the fork and empty plate down so he could rest his hands on Ace’s arms instead. “Do you think you’d be interested in making dinner with me tonight? Maybe we can dance some more.”

Ace nodded. “I’d like that,” he said. “Only if we can have more cake afterwards.”

“Sounds like a deal,” Sanji said. “There’s plenty left.”

“...Kisses, too?”

Sanji turned his head to look at Ace. “Kisses, too.”

**Author's Note:**

> This was a fun one to write! Let me know what you thought, and come say hi to me on my [writing blog](https://bajillianwrites.tumblr.com/) where I post about my writing process - including about how the Cooking By The Book remix was stuck in my head during the second half of this.


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